


Dragon's Solstice

by KeBonita



Category: Power Rangers
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-02-14 23:58:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13018962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeBonita/pseuds/KeBonita
Summary: The Dragon's Solstice is an occurrence that takes place every 100 years. It is the sacred duty of the chosen Power Rangers to defeat the evil, and prevent it from spreading across the world. However, after only 30 years of peace, the solstice has awakened again, and it's time for a new generation of Power Rangers to take on this evil.





	1. Awaken

There’s always this sort of peace in the valley in the middle of the night. It’s like a thick blanket settling over the valley, putting everyone and everything in a sound slumber. But at that moment, there was movement. The earth rumbles from below everyone’s feet, subtle enough for the smallest creatures to wake. A warning, of what was yet to come. The awakening of a deep, dark past, hidden in the depths of the mountain; slumbering in the trench of the wide river that separated the city from what seemed like the rest of the world; in the long extinct volcano that resides on the easternmost border of town. There’s a low hum of electricity in the sky, a sign of a storm yet to come.

Deep inside the Blackwell manor, Claire woke with a start. She tossed the sheets from on top of her, and ran out onto the porch attached to her room. There, she saw the storm coming.

And it was in that moment that Claire Blackwell knew- it was once again time to call upon the power of the rangers.

~~~~~~

**Talia**

“Jasper, come on. We have to go!” I urge my slightly intoxicated best friend. The big star linebacker shakes his head, and continues dancing to the music.

“But the party just started!” He says over the music, pulling Talia closer to the middle.

“Jasper I’m serious.” I yell.

“Fine, party pooper.” He says, and holds her hand as she leads him out of the crowd.

“Forgive me for being a good friend and trying to not get you kicked off the football team.” I respond. As seniors and athletes, we weren’t really allowed to party- or get intoxicated as minors no less. Jasper had convinced me to come along with him and watch him, and I obliged only because his girlfriend, my other best friend, was out of town.

We were probably a sight to see. Jasper, the big, 6’2, strong triple season athlete, holding onto tiny, 5’4 me. Jasper was holding onto my arm for dear life, and I was just trying to make sure the both of us didn’t trip over a stump or something. Because of his height compared to mine, Jasper was slightly hunched over, carefully watching his footing too.

“Why couldn’t they have made the party in some field or something? Instead, we have to tread through the freaking forest in the middle of the night.” I mutter to myself as the abandoned house’s lights fade from view. That’s when my foot went through the ground, and so did the rest of me.

“Talia!” Yells Jasper, and I hear him fall behind me. I keep hitting these dirt walls, and after a few seconds I hit the ground below me, hard enough to knock me out.

~~~~~

I wake up to a soft blue light surrounding me, and the sound of a small river running. I force myself to sit up, and face the light source: a dark wall with a single, blue light. I stand up, and walk towards it.

‘Talia.’ it seems to whisper, and only gets louder as I get closer.

The ground starts shaking below me, but the one solid point is the blue light. I reach out, holding the solid form, and pull it out of the spot in the wall.

“Talia!” Says Jasper, and I flail, slapping him in the face with my left hand. He recoils, and I sit myself up. It’s pitch black, except for the light from Jasper’s phone.

“Oh my god Jasper, I am so-” I say, moving my hands to my face only to realize I was holding something in my right hand. A blue light. It was a hunk of what looked like raw sapphire, the size of my palm, glowing ever so slightly. The light from my dream.

“Jasper, look.” I say, showing him the gem. He looks at me, wide eyed, and slowly lifts his hand, showing me a similar gem, but a ruby red instead of a bright, sapphire blue.

“Okay, this is weird. But we need to find a way to get out of here.” Says Jasper, looking towards the way we entered, but it's as if we never fell in some hole.

“There’s gotta be a way out of here.” I say, looking around.

~~~~~

**Iris**

“Conner, I can’t tell her. It would ruin everything!” Says Iris, pacing the forest. She couldn’t believe what Conner was telling her to do.

“You’re gonna have to do it someday. Hey, why don’t you ask her to homecoming. I’m sure she’ll say yes.” He says, examining his nails.

“That’s even worse!” She says, stopping and turning towards him. “Besides, you’re going with me because you’re the only guy whose presence I can actually stand, and isn't trying to get into my pants.” She says.

“That’s because you’re not wearing pants.” He says jokingly. Iris rolls her eyes after briefly looking down to see her red corduroy skirt.

“Beside the point.” She says, and there is a loud snap behind Conner. He jumps away from the tree, and screams loudly.

Behind him was a white humanoid figure that was roughly the size of Andre the Giant. It was disfigured, and had no face to it. As it takes a step forward, Iris and Conner take a step back, only to fall into the earth themselves.

~~~~~

Iris awakens to a bulging headache. As she goes to rub her head, she hit something hard against her forehead.

“What in the world?” She says, looking at the stone in her hand. It lets off a soft, golden glow. She twists her yellow elephant purse from her side to the front of her, stuffing the crystal inside as she looks for her phone. She pulls it out, and turns on the flashlight just as another light shows, facing her.

“Iris?” Says Conner. She shifts her light to his face, and he flinches.

“What the hell just happened?” Asks Iris. She aims the light towards the top of their little cavern, and it’s all dark earth. Iris stands up, and helps Conner up as well.

“I have no idea. But it looks like there’s a tunnel over there.” Says Conner, walking over towards it. She grabs onto his arm, and point their lights towards the tunnel.

~~~~~

**Talia**

“Look, there’s a light coming from there!” Says Jasper, and shift his hold on me. He’s carrying me on his back, because as we were walking out, I stuck my leg in a hole in the dark. After a quick exam, Jasper told me that my ankle was sprained, and decided that me clinging onto his back would be the best course of action in case he needed to run. Besides, that way all I have to do is hold onto my phone and make sure he doesn’t fall. I put our two hunks of crystal into the pocket of my blue leather jacket for safekeeping.

He starts quickening his pace, and I see two lights up ahead.

“Jasper? And Talia?” Says the familiar voice of Iris King. Next to her is Conner Marsden, the only guy I’ve ever seen at her side for longer than ten minutes.

“Did y’all fall through a random hole in the ground too?” I ask jokingly. The look on their faces tells me a different story.

“This has got to be some kind of joke.” Says Iris, her eyebrows knitting in frustration. “Hello, Ashton Kutcher! I’m done! I don’t want to be punked anymore!” She yells, spinning around.

“What happened to you?” Asks Conner, nodding at me.

“Sprained my ankle as I fell, I guess. Kinda blacked out there for a second.” I say, and he nods. He nods, and sticks his free hand in his jacket pocket. His face shifts, and he pulls out a shiny black rock.

“What the hell.” He says in awe. Jasper’s breath hitches.

“I’m putting you down, Talia.” Says Jasper, crouches down near the wall of the tunnel so I can release my grip on him and sit.

“You found some weird rock too, huh?” I say, pulling out mine and Jasper’s discoveries. I hand his to him, and Iris digs into her own purse.

“What the hell.” She says pulling out a yellow rock. The four of us get closer, trying to examine our rocks in the light. Suddenly, the rocks themselves begin to glow brightly, and intensely. The four of us look away, and I close my eyes at its intensity.

The ground changes into what feels like soft carpet on a flat floor. I open my eyes and find myself in some sort of nicely decorated game room. And staring into the wide brown eyes of Matthew Blackwell.


	2. First Taste

**Talia**

Matthew Blackwell was one of the IT guys who regularly was there for any tech related issue. He fixed broken mics, helped older teachers with their computers, and provided ideas to the other tech students in the school. He is actually a really cool person, and from previous conversations with him, just trying to give back to the school that he loved so much. He was only 23, but he still lived with his mom. Which wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the fact that his mom is the Principal, Claire Blackwell. Who came running down the stairs as soon as Matt yelled bloody murder.

“No, no, no, no, no!” She yells as she comes down, and spies the four of us in her home.

“Dr. Blackwell-”

“We can explain-”

“What the actual-”

“Silence!” She says, raising her hands. We all shut up after that. “The crystals, show me the crystals”

The four of us hold them out, and she examines them one by one. She hands mine back to me and takes a long breath.

“I never thought this would happen again in my lifetime.” She says, breath shaky.

“Dr. Blackwell, what do you mean?” Asks Iris, looking down at the crystal and at the dean.

She takes a moment, looking at the four of us.

“Mom, is this…”

“The Power Crystals. Sit down, kids. Let me explain.”

I stay where I am at, and Jasper sits down beside me on an ottoman, Iris and Damian on the couch beside us. The Dr. herself sits next to her son. Matt messes around with the controller and a soft blue light appears behind me from the T.V. screen.

“Have you ever heard of the Power Rangers?” She asks seriously. It takes a moment before Damien starts laughing.

“You’re not kidding?” He asks. Dr. Blackwell smiles.

“No. My family has been guarding this secret for generations. But the call of the Power Rangers hasn't been made in over 30 years. Not since…”

“The Dragon’s Solstice.” I say, and everyone looks at me.

“My grandmother told me all kinds of stories about the Power Rangers growing up.”

“What is the Dragon’s Solstice?” Asks Jasper, finally speaking up.

“The Dragon’s Solstice occurs every hundred years. It’s a shift in power, one where the Power Rangers fight to close when it resurges. It is unique every time it resurges. But like I said, the last time was only 30 years ago. It can’t have reemerged so soon. But the crystals here are a sign. And that means you four are the power rangers that have been called forth to fight this.”

“You’re joking. I barely even have time to sleep, let alone be a power ranger.” Says Iris.

“So wait, that means we are the Power Rangers now?” Asks Conner.

“Yes. It’s really late now, and I know that you’re all tired. Matthew, can you take them home? I will email your student emails later, and we can schedule a meeting in the morning to talk about all of this in depth.” She says as Matthew gets up.

“You can just drop me off at my car, Matthew. I can drive home.” I say, and Jasper gives me this look. Matthew nods and heads upstairs.

“I sprained my left ankle, not my right one.” I mutter, and Dr. Blackwell raises a brow.

“I have something for that.” Says Dr. Blackwell, and she makes a motion gesturing me to wait.

Jasper helps me get up, and as I am waiting I pull my shoe and sock off. Jasper hisses in shock as he sees my swollen ankle.

“Let’s see your foot, Talia.” She says, coming back downstairs. She puts a salve on my ankle, rubbing the pain away. She then wraps my foot.

“Should be good as new in a few minutes.” She says, gently tapping my foot.

“Thank you, Doctor Blackwell.” I say, putting my sock back on.

“When we aren’t in school, it’s okay to call me Claire.” She says, smiling. “And that goes for all of you.”

And with that, Jasper lifts me up and we make a small procession to the upstairs, following behind Claire. She leads us out the front door to a car waiting for us. Conner opens the front passenger side and Jasper puts me in it. I buckle in as the others load into the back of the Jeep.

“Okay, where are we off to?” Says Matthew as he pulls out of the driveway.

“My car is parked out by Redwood heights lodge.” I pipe up, and Matthew nods.

“One resort coming right up.”

~~~~~~

Jasper helps me out of the car, and into mine. Once I get it started, Matthew drives off, leaving me and Jasper all to our lonesome. As per usual, he takes my phone and plugs it into the usb charging port, rapidly typing in the password, and plays our shared playlist that has songs Lena, him, and I like. The first one is a song by our favorite Tex-Mex singer, and Lena’s namesake, Selena.

It’s actually hilarious considering out of the three of us, Jasper is the one who knows Spanish the best. I mean, sure, Lena and I are Salvadorean and Mexican, respectively, but Jasper is taking AP Spanish III, and knows ‘proper’ Spanish. In reality, High School Spanish is actually Spain Spanish, but if he were to ever go to our respective countries, he’d be given real funny looks.

“Como me duele!” He sings dramatically as the song ends, and I pull up to his driveway.

“And this is your stop.” I say, and he sighs dramatically.

“Chill. I’ll see you at orientation, nerd. Now get out of my car before your sister and your girlfriend slash our best friend murder me for bringing you back way past your curfew.” I say as he gets out of the car.

“Fine, fine. See you on moving day, asshole.” He says, closing the door. I watch him get into his house and drive back into town to get home.

~~~~~

I manage to park in my usual spot by the curb, spotting Lena’s parents car in their driveway, signaling the return of their family from their vacation.

Lena and I have been best friends since she moved in across the street about 10 years ago. My parents went right over to her house, and helped them move into the neighborhood, and I managed to get a new friend out of it.

I manage to sneak my way towards the back of the house, and open the sliding door to my room. Thank you mom for switching rooms in order to have the bigger closet. I close the sliding door and lock it, and start stripping down to my underwear, and grab my sweatpants from the ground.

I slowly make my way to the bathroom, and quietly shut the door. Grabbing the makeup removing materials from the cabinet, I start wiping off my ‘face’ leaving trails of black from my eyes where the liner started coming off. My eyes start watering, the makeup remover burning my eyes. I close them for a few seconds, then continue.

And with that, I make my way to bed, and fall into blissful sleep.

~~~~~

**Iris**

I wake to the sound of my sister pounding on my door.

“You’re gonna get it!” She says in a sing-songy voice, and then I hear her run off.

“Iris!” Yells my mother, and I groan. I throw my sheets off of me and grab my robe, putting it on me as I make my way towards the dining room, where my mother and stepfather are waiting.

“Iris Eloise Montgomery.” Says my mother, standing beside Daniel as he is reading the newspaper and eating breakfast.

“How dare you come home way past curfew last night and expect me not to notice?” She says, looking very angry. I shrug and sit down at my seat, where my breakfast is already in place. I start digging into the avocado toast and eggs my mother had laid out for me.

“Iris, Daniel and I were worried sick! How could you go out and not tell anyone, and not answer your phone either?”

“Mom, I’m fine. I’m here, and I’m gonna eat this breakfast in peace. Then I’m gonna drive over to dad’s. Then I’m going to bed. That’s my day in a nutshell. Happy?”

“No, I’m not. You’re not leaving this house at all today, otherwise-”

“Otherwise what? I’ll call the judge. Let’s see what they say about denying me my right to see my father.”

My mother's face contorts into anger, but Daniel puts a hand on hers and she relents.

“Just make sure to call your mother if you are going to be out late, Iris. Tell Parker I said hi.” He sighs, but smiles. Even though my biological parents hate each other, at the very least my dads are friends.

“Thank you, Daniel.” I say, finishing off the last slice of toast. “At least someone in this house has some sort of sense.”

And with that, I get up and head back to my room to get changed.

~~~~~~

**Conner**

“Hey kiddo.” I say as I pick Ava up from her crib. She’s crying, but since Garrett went with Karyn and Mason to get groceries, I’m the only ‘adult’ in the house with to take care of my two sisters. They’re not actually my biological sisters, in all honesty. In fact, none of us are related other than Karyn and Lucille. Karyn adopted Lucille into the family after her mother, Karyn’s cousin, died in an accident. But we welcomed her with open arms anyway.

“Just hungry?” I ask her, and grab the bottle from the dresser. She grabs the bottle and starts drinking from it like nobody's business. She’s the cutest little thing, looking like a little cherub from the bible Karyn has in her room, down to the blue eyes and light hair.

I was adopted at around her age too, but Garrett at the time was 8, not 17, so it was a bit different then. He hated all the attention I was getting, so we don't really have a good relationship. Not to mention he's an adult now, and still lives here. The Marsdens don't mind, but I think he’s moving out soon anyway to live with his girlfriend.

“Conner?” Says Lucille from the door. I turn to her, rocking Ava in my arms.

“Yeah?”

“There’s someone at the door.” She says, then runs off.

I make my way downstairs, still holding Ava, and open the door as soon as I see Iris through the peephole.

“God my mother is the worst.” She says as she walks in, and then spots Ava.

“Hey sweetcheeks.” She says, brushing her hair from her face. Iris points to the living room, and sneaks her way over while I go put Ava down in her crib.

“What did she do this time.” I ask as I sit beside her, turning on the baby monitor.

“Just being her usual self, Conner. I can’t wait for school to start so I can just not see her face all the time.”

“Have you figured out where you’re staying for the majority of the school year?” I ask her, knowing fully well that she prefers spending her school year at her dad’s, since he doesn’t smother her like her mother.

“Dad’s, since it’s closer.” She says, and I smirk.

“So how are things with you and Arianna?” I ask nonchalantly.

“Don’t you dare give me that look.” She says, and I roll my eyes.

“I just hope that one day you’ll grow a pair and ask her out.”

“Not everyone is out like you, Conner.” She says, tossing her hair back.

“Conner! We’re home! Help with the groceries?” Asks my brother at the top of his lungs.

“On my way!” I say, and nod towards the baby monitor. Iris nods, and grabs it from the side table while I go walk outside.


	3. Changes

**Jasper**

The smell of bacon and pancakes wake me up, wafting through the small cabin. Thank god for awesome older sisters.

I roll out of bed, my head pounding as I find my center of gravity, and enter the shared bathroom so I can wash my teeth and my face.

It’s kind of crazy that it’s only been two years since our parents passed, but it’s days like these that makes it feel like it’s been much longer. The third year anniversary is coming up, actually, just before orientation.

“Morning Crudo.” Says my older sister Jade I enter the room. Her hair was in small braids that were in a high ponytail, and she looked as professional as ever. She was currently working as an emergency room nurse at Hidden Springs Memorial, and was working towards her Doctorate in health so she could be an ER Doctor. And like me, she also knew Spanish, and conversed fluently with not only Talia’s parents, but also my girlfriend, Lena’s, parents.

I take my seat across from her and dig into the glory that is eggs, bacon, and pancakes for breakfast. She sets out a glass of water, and I down it in one go.

“You ready for orientation?” She asks excitedly.

“Hell yeah!” I say, mouth full. She rolls her eyes.

It’ll be my senior year of high school, and a busy one from what I knew. Neverglade Prep was an extremely competitive college preparatory school, so of course I had overloaded my courses. And during our orientation day, we would be doing the usual things- getting our schedules, parking passes, talking to our friends- but this year, our year was going to have a back to school field day. All the club and sports leaders were to be in charge of different events, and since I was co-captain of the football team and president of the Biotech team, I convinced the two to join up for this field day.

“Biotech found out what they want to do yet?” She asks as she sits across from me.

“We’re cooperating with the Football team for the frisbee golf tournament.”

“Makes sense. I’m gonna be working overtime today, so I’ll see you tomorrow morning. What will you be doing all day?”

“Probably go over to Lena’s house before practice. Then afterwards come back home.” I say, and there’s a honk outside.

“That’s probably Lena. See you tomorrow sis.” I say, collecting my things from the couch. And while I was expecting my girlfriend, low and behold arrives the one and only Talia, leaning against her car. She sees me, and pulls her sunglasses off her face.

“We have to talk about last night.”

~~~~~~~~

**Talia**

When I woke up this morning, the pain and swelling that I had felt in my ankle last night had disappeared, as if i had never sprained my ankle in the first place. Whatever she used on me is absolute magic.

For now though, we drive towards the center of town, to Serendipity, our favorite coffee shop. It’s locally owned, and at this time of day, completely empty, save for a few office workers from the Ellington Corporate Building.

“I told Lena to meet us at Pepper Mirror.” I say as I pull up to my parking spot. It’s not actually mine, but it’s where I park the majority of the time. “But she said she won’t be fully awake until at least 2, so I thought that gave us plenty of time to talk about last night.

“Us?”

“Meaning the four of us.” Says Conner, coming up behind Jasper. He spins his keys around his finger, leaning against my car. “Iris is getting us a seat inside.”

We follow him in, and he motions for us to order something before he walks up the stairs to the second floor viewing, which is usually empty since all the hubbub is downstairs. Plus, there’s a little alcove covered by a screen, where I see Iris’s back towards us.

“Can I get an iced green tea with blue raspberry and lime flavoring, medium, a lemon poppyseed muffin, and whatever he wants.” I say, pulling out my wallet.

“Uhm excuse you-” Starts Jasper, and I cut him off.

“Just order. You know I’m just going to win.” I tell him, and he relents, telling the barista his order. I pay and we make our way towards the end, where we wait for a few minutes while they make our drinks. I stick my hand in my shorts pocket, fidgeting with the stone in my hand.

“Iris King, and Conner Marsden. If someone told me last week I’d be hanging out with the head cheerleader and the social outcast, I’d’ve laughed so hard.”

“Says the co-captain of the football team.” I mutter as they call out our drinks. We take our food, and head upstairs to where the pair are waiting for us. The screen almost cut off the alcove, if it weren’t for the sliver of space where Jasper and I can squeeze through. Jasper closes the screen behind him.

“Listen, whatever happened last night was some sort of fluke.” Says Iris as soon as Jasper and I seat ourselves across from her. “We probably all had some bad punch or something-”

“I didn’t drink any punch.” I say, looking her dead in her dark brown eyes. “I was dd for the night.”

“Well you must have had something we all-”

“I brought my own water and soda, and snacks too.” I say. Which is true. You never know with these high school parties. And I take my designated driver responsibilities seriously.

“Iris, I’m telling you. This shit’s real. Check your purse.” Says Conner, stirring his coffee idly. He puts the coffee down on the table in front of him, and pulls out a black rock from his pocket.

“I looked this up online. This is obsidian. Like, lava rock. And yours has to be citrine. And I purposefully left this in my other jeans, and on my way here I felt it all of a sudden. Like it just appeared.” He says, and puts it down on the coffee table. I pull mine out from my pocket, and place it down too.

“What the fuck.” Says Iris as she pulls out her yellow stone, setting it down on the table. “I threw this in the river last night.”

“And I swear I left this on my nightstand.” Says Jasper. He puts his down too.

“So what are we going to do?” Asks Conner.

“Well, first off, we check our emails. See if Claire sent us anything.” I say, pulling out my phone from my pocket. They all do the same, and I open up the mail app to find the most recent thing sent at around four this morning from Claire.

‘I would like the four of you to meet me today for brunch at the Fire and Ice Bistro, at 10 am sharp.’ It reads.

“That’s in like an hour.” Says Jasper.

“Check your clock, jock. It’s in like 15 minutes.” Says Iris, reaching out to grab her stone. She drops it suddenly, and blows her hand.

“That thing just burned me!” She screeches, as the gems start to glow. We all turn away at its brightness, and as soon as it's over, our stones have been replaced with various assortments of jewelry.

“What the fuck.” I mutter under my breath, picking up the necklace in my stone’s place. It’s smaller now, and it looks polished, resembling Kida’s necklace from Atlantis. The only difference is mine is a darker blue. Jasper picks up the ring, a silver band with a large red gem in the center.

“Well at least it goes with my outfit.” Mutters Iris as she stuffs the bracelet into her purse. I grab the necklace and stuff it into my pocket. Jasper, meanwhile, puts his ring on. He holds it up, admiring it in the light.

“What? It looks nice.” He shrugs as Iris gives him a look. I honestly thought something was going to happen, like it was going to glow again or something; but there was absolutely nothing.

“Well, we should get going, I guess.” Says Iris.

“Luckily Fire is just across the plaza. Jasper and I will meet you there?” I ask, and they nod. We all walk out together, then split up in the parking lot. I mean, sure, we could have walked, but Jasper and I have stuff to do afterwards.

Jasper stares at the ring the whole ride over, taking it off and examining it, as if he was expecting something too. But again, nothing.

I park beside Conner, who had just exited his car. He gives me a two finger salute and walks into the bistro by himself. No Iris yet, it seems.

“Come on Talia.” Says Jasper after a second. He gets out of the car and I follow after him into the bistro. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Conner**   
  
As soon as I enter the bistro, I get escorted by a waiter to the table where Ms- I mean Claire is sitting. She looks up at me, surprised.    
  
"Hi Conner. I'm guessing the others are on their way?" She asks, and I nod. I sit across from her, at the chair closest to the wall.   
  
"Show me your gem." She says, trying to break the silence.    
  
"Well, that's going to be a bit of an issue." I reply, pulling the earrings out of my pocket. It’s a good thing my ears are already pierced, otherwise I’d have a lot of explaining to do when I get home.   
  
She stares at them for a second, and then takes a deep breath.    
  
"Well, this is a predicament." She says, and Jasper and Talia appear. Talia takes a seat next to Claire, and Jasper sits between the two of us.    
  
"Show me your gems, please." She asks, and they pull their newly converted pieces of jewelry out too. Claire looks a bit distressed, but if the others have noticed, then they haven't said anything.    
  
"And Iris?" She asks, and I shrug. I pull out my phone and send out a quick text to her. 

  
'Where are you? You were right behind me.'    
  
She doesn't reply immediately, but she does read it.    
  
"She'll be a moment." I say, and she nods.    
  
"Order something, please. I would not like to be the only one eating at this time."    
  
The others pick up a menu, and so do I. I used to come here often enough with my family, so I pretty much know the menu by heart. But today, I look over the menu anyway, waiting for the others to say something, anything.    
  
Iris finally arrives, and I can feel her annoyance coming off her in waves.    
  
"Sorry, some jerk decided to cut me off and took the spot I was going to park in." She says, sitting down and picking up a menu. She looks through it, thoroughly annoyed- and I know it’s not from the parking situation.   
  
"And your gem?" Asks Claire.    
  
"Well, it's a bracelet now." She says, pulling it out of her purse. Claire cracks a bittersweet smile.    
  
"So it's actually happening." She mutters to herself, and puts her head in a hand.    
  
"Are you ready to order?" Asks the waiter, and we all nod in agreement. He takes a quick look at all of us, and takes everyone's order.    
  
"Mr. Marsden, your usual?" He asks, and I nod. He takes our menus and walks away.    
  
"So I know we briefly touched on the subject the other night, but there's so much more we need to discuss. Like I said, my family has been working with the Rangers for generations, but this is the first time something like this has happened twice in a generation. The first time this had happened was 34 years ago, when I was 16 years old."    
  
"So did you know the previous power rangers?"    
  
"Yes, but not in person. I met them in their costumed form, but that was about as close my parents allowed me to get to. The bond between the Power Rangers and their mentor is sacred, and secret. My mother was a Mentor before me, but she didn't expect me to be one. No one did. I'm not trained for this. But I'll have you know, I've been looking at all her books since last night. And the first sign of the rise is your gemstones transforming to something inconspicuous, like a belt buckle, a watch, or even a phone. Then there's some words, like an incantation you're supposed to say, but I can't figure it out. It'll transform you, and even give you certain powers. And every generation is different as well, so there’s no telling what’s going to happen next. I know some of you are involved in sports, so we’ll find some time to figure this out together.”

“Wait, so this is for real? Like something that actually has to happen?” Asks Iris, speaking up for the first time. Her tone is bordering on angry, and I put my hand on her forearm under the table. 

“Ms. King, I would never joke about something like this. And as much as I would like to, I can’t change who is chosen. I would never wish to bestow this upon you.” She says, sounding sorrowful.

“Again, I barely have time to sleep, let alone be some sort of superhero!” Says Iris, shaking her head. “What did I get myself into?”

“Iris is right. Between college applications and sports, I don’t have much free time for anything. But, from what my grandmother told me, I honestly have to say that if this is legit, then we have to do this. We have to find a way to end this before it escalates. She said that in the final battle, the red ranger sacrificed himself to seal off the evil. I guess it's up to us to make sure he didn’t die in vain.” Says Talia, looking somber as well. She has this look in her eye, like she’s calculating something.

“I’ve got the last two periods free, so I’ll have plenty of time to help research and train.”

“We could probably rearrange my schedule, somehow. I’ve heard her grandmother’s stories as well, and it’s not some kids bedtime story. People have died in the past, and I can’t sit on my hands knowing that there’s something I can do to help. I’m in too.” Says Jasper, and he shares a brief smile with Talia.

But before anyone else can say a word, our food arrives. We awkwardly eat in silence, for a moment.

Iris nudges me with her foot, and gives me a look, like she’s  uncomfortable. As amazing as this sounds, I can understand why she wouldn’t want to deal with this.    

“Listen, guys, I’ve got to think about this.” I say, and Iris lets out a silent breath.

“Conner-”

 

And that's when we hear the screaming start.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Jasper**

“Listen, guys, I’ve got to think about this.”

“Conner-”, Starts Claire, but we hear a scream come from outside the restaurant and I jump out of my seat, running towards a window just like everyone else.

“What the hell are those?” Yells Iris, looking scared. Honestly, I’m a little terrified too.

Tall, humanoid figures are creating havoc in their path. Their faces are misfigured, and in the sunlight they look a little gray. They scare people, and break stuff, but look like they’re waiting for something.

“Those are bogeys.” Says Claire, her face twisted in determination.

“Well, we gotta do something about it.” I say, putting the ring on my finger. I look towards Talia, and she nods, putting on the necklace. 

We run outside the restaurant, and Talia pulls me around the corner. 

“We can’t let anybody know who we are, Jasper.” She says suddenly. “My parents would flip.” 

“You’re right. But we gotta do something. How does this work?” I say, twisting the ring on my finger.

“Come on, come on.”

“Didn’t she say something about how we transform with some words?” She asks me, touching the necklace briefly.

“Transform!” She yells, and it doesn’t work.

“It’s time to morph…” Says a voice briefly.

“What?”

“What, Jasper?” She asks, and I smile.

“It’s morphin time!” I yell, and feel a pulse of heat come from my ring, going all over my body. My vision gets sharper, and I feel much, much stronger.

“Jasper!” Yells Talia, pride showing in her eyes. She pumps her fist up.

“It’s morphin time!” She yells as well, and a flash of blue light engulfs her body, starting from her necklace. The result is her in a dark blue bodysuit, covered in silver protective armor, and a blue helmet with a triangular visor.

“Do I look nearly as cool as you?” I ask her, and she nods.

“Let’s go!” She yells, and we both run into the fray.

As soon as we step out of the alleyway, the bogeys start attacking again, but this time they start ambling towards us.

Instinct kicks in immediately. It’s like I was born knowing how to fight, and I can tell Talia feels the same way. After the bogeys get knocked over, they turn into dust.

“Dammit, Red, there’s too many of them!” Yells Talia, and she’s right. They just keep coming.

“Sounds like you two could use some help.” Says a voice behind us, and with a flash of gold, several bogeys are destroyed at once.

“Okay, I changed my mind. I like this.” Says Iris, getting into a casual position with a gold war hammer on her shoulder. She’s wearing a gold and white suit. Directly behind her is, with my guess, Conner, hand on his hip, and somehow looking smug even though his face is covered by his black helmet.

“I told you.” He says, producing a black baton from his side.

“How do you do that?” Asks Talia, punching down another bogey. 

Iris shrugs, and swings at another bogey. It’s like a scene out of a color run- except instead of a myriad of color, it’s shades of grey. It looks so damn badass. 

“Oh my god, Red, like this!” Says Talia, tapping her left wrist pocket. A sword starts materializing in front of her, and she she swings at an oncoming bogey.

“Ok!” I yell back, and sure enough, a long red spear appears to be sticking out of my other wrist. It looks like this thing adjusts to my left handedness.

I take it and start swinging. It gets much easier, and we start gaining some ground on the bogeys, when all of a sudden, the bogeys dematerialize.

“That was fun!” Says a feminine voice in front of them. The person in front of them was wearing a similar suit, but in pink. The person claps their hands, walking towards us menacingly.

“I was told there were to be opposition, and here you are.” They say, clasping their hands behind their back. “Now, why don’t you just surrender, and we’ll go easy on you.”

“Like hell.” Says Talia from beside me.

“You’re making a huge mistake.” Says the pink person.

“No, you’re making a mistake. Why are you terrorizing these citizens?” I ask, and they laugh.

“If you don’t know why, then you’re gonna be fun to beat.” She says, and jumps in midair, pulling out a bow and arrow, aiming towards us. It explodes at our feet, sending us flying towards the restaurant.

We skid on the ground for a few feet, landing in a line a few feet before the restaurant.

“Who are you?” Asks Conner.

“Rosaea. Nice to meet your acquaintance.” They say. They cock their head to one side, and their shoulders droop.

“Boo, looks like it’s time to go. See you next time!” They say, and they do an impressive backflip out of sight.

People start coming out of the stores and restaurant, slowly, yet surely. The whispers begin to get louder as the citizens surround the Rangers, until a voice cuts through, silencing the plaza.

“Dios mio! The Power Rangers are back!” Cries Guadalupe Azulejo- the oldest woman in town, and Talia’s grandmother. The crowd parts to let her in the circle, where she helps me up.

“The Power Rangers? For real?” Blurts out strangers.

“Everybody, stand back and let them go.” She says, and the crowd disperses.

“Go, collect yourselves, and come back stronger.” She whispers to me, and I nod at her.

“Lets go, Rangers!” I say, and lead them towards the alley where Talia and I transformed.

“What now?” Asks Conner.

“Well, we detransform. Make sure no one is watching, and disperse. Meet up outside the restaurant.” Says Talia, taking a deep breath. Like tiles flipping, the suit disintegrates into her necklace.

“I’ll be honest, I have no idea how I did that.” She says, smiling. “I’ll see you guys soon.”


End file.
